盲人摸象

盲人摸象

Literally means:

blind men try to size up an elephant, each mistaking the part for the whole animal

Actually means:

mistake a part for the whole

According to a Buddhist story, there were once several blind men determined to find out what an elephant should look like. The one who placed his hand on its leg said that the elephant looked like a pillar; the one who touched its body said it was a wall, and another who caught its tail thought it must look like a snake. All these far from the fact, because each person only grasped a part of the being,and mistakenly thought that understood the whole truth.

It metaphorically means that one comes to the conclusion based on a partial understanding or experience, thus committing the mistake of taking the part for the whole. It can also be said as 瞎子摸象. Derogatory.

佛经故事说：几个盲人摸一只大象，摸到腿的说大象像一根柱子，摸到身躯的说大象像一堵墙，摸到尾巴的说大象像一条蛇。他们所说的都跟事实不符，因为每个人只看到了事物的一部分并据此认为看到了事物的整体。

比喻只根据片面的了解或局部的经验来下结论，犯了以局部代整体的错误。也可说“瞎子摸象”具有贬义色彩。